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The One They Left Behind, Their Forever Sorrow
NovelShort
Completed
The drowning rescue drill was underway. My best friend, Lily Harper, complained that I wasn't taking it seriously. With a laugh, she kicked me into the deep end, then climbed onto my shoulders and shoved me underwater with all her strength. My calf cramped. Cold water rushed into my lungs, making them burn with pain. I struggled desperately, trying to reach the surface and crying help. My boyfriend swam right past me. He went straight to Lily, who had barely swallowed a few mouthfuls of water, wrapped his arms around her, and hurried back for the edge of the pool.
Chapters (5)
第1章
The drowning rescue drill was underway.
My best friend, Lily Harper, complained that I wasn't taking it seriously. With a laugh, she kicked me into the deep end, then climbed onto my shoulders and shoved me underwater with all her strength.
My calf cramped. Cold water rushed into my lungs, making them burn with pain. I struggled desperately, trying to reach the surface and crying help.
My boyfriend swam right past me. He went straight to Lily, who had barely swallowed a few mouthfuls of water, wrapped his arms around her, and hurried back for the edge of the pool.
As I sank deeper, I turned and grabbed my childhood friend's arm with all my strength.
But he kicked me away without hesitation.
"Quit messing around. The air conditioning in here is cold. What if Lily catches a cold? I’ll go get her a towel."
The kick sent the back of my head crashing against the pool floor.
Through the haze, I saw my brother swimming toward me.
With the last of my strength, I reached out to him.
But he swam right past me and bent down to retrieve a pair of pink goggles sinking nearby.
"You're a grown woman and you're still playing these childish jealousy games? Aren't you embarrassed?"
He didn't spare me another glance. He simply turned and swam back toward the poolside.
Ice-cold water rushed into my mouth and nose from every direction. The light shimmering on the surface slowly blurred until it faded away.
On the poolside, they crowded around Lily, fussing over her. It took them a long while to remember I was still in the water.
"Juliet, are you seriously pretending to drown just to get us to save you?"
"That's enough. You're taking the joke too far."
"Stop messing around. We'll take Lily to get some treatment first. Once you come up, remember to book us a restaurant."
But I had already drowned.
I'd never sulk or make a fuss again. I would never again be their little sidekick, someone they could summon whenever they wanted and dismiss whenever they pleased.
***
When I opened my eyes again, I was floating in midair.
Lily was wrapped in an ivory towel, leaning against my boyfriend, Joshua Coleman.
Her hair was still dripping wet, making her look even more fragile and pitiful.
"I swallowed so much water back there. My throat still hurts."
Joshua gently patted her back, his voice soft and soothing. "You're fine now. I'm here. I won't let anything happen to you."
My childhood friend, Caleb Turner, held a towel and carefully dried the ends of her hair. "If I'd known, I would've teamed up with Lily so I could keep an eye on her."
My brother, Simon Baxter, handed over the pink goggles he'd wiped clean, smiling proudly like he expected praise. "Your limited-edition goggles. I got them back for you."
Lily gave Simon a sweet smile, her eyes lighting up. "Simon, you're so good to me. Thank you."
"Don't mention it. Anything that concerns you matters, no matter how small."
When it came to me, even the biggest things didn't matter.
I floated above them, watching their little display of affection. My eyes stung.
Lily glanced back at the calm water of the deep end. "Why hasn't Juliet come up yet? She's not mad at me, is she? When I pushed her into the deep end, I just wanted to make the drill more realistic."
My heart suddenly tightened.
Joshua let out a scoff, completely unconcerned.
"Forget about her. She's been sulking all morning because I didn't buy her the sea salt lemonade she wanted. She's probably down there holding her breath to prank us, waiting for us to come coax her out."
That morning, I’d specifically asked Joshua to get me a hot sea salt lemonade to soothe my stomach.
He'd easily agreed, only to turn around and buy five mango smoothies, all Lily's favorite.
I'm allergic to mango and couldn't drink it. But to them, that was me throwing a fit.
Caleb shook his head, exasperated.
"She's a grown woman, yet she still acts like a spoiled child. We’ve indulged her too much.”
“Just now, when she saw Joshua holding Lily, she reached out for me to hold her too. Seriously, she always expects us to treat her just like everyone else. How childish is that?"
Simon smiled, his tone offhand. "She's been competitive since she was little. Whenever things don't go her way, she sulks and gives everyone the silent treatment."
第2章
"Let her be. Once she’s calmed down, she'll come after us like a good girl."
Lily looked full of guilt.
"When Juliet comes out, don't talk about her like that. It's my fault. If I hadn't pushed her just to make the drill look more real, she wouldn't be mad and hiding from us on purpose."
"Shouldn't we go back down and pull Juliet up?"
Joshua reached out to stop her, his face full of tender concern.
"You never look after yourself. You just swallowed so much water, and now you're still pushing yourself. What if you get sick?"
"What could happen to her? You know what she's like. She loves making a big deal out of nothing."
Caleb nodded along. "Yeah, she's not a child. She's not going to disappear on us."
"Besides, she held her breath longer than anyone else when we had that challenge."
Watching how confidently they dismissed everything, I floated beside them, arguing and screaming over and over.
"I'm not hiding from you on purpose. My foot cramped and I drowned."
"I'm still in the water. Please, go down and save me."
But no matter how I screamed, they couldn't hear a single word.
My brother waved a hand and called out toward the surface of the deep end. "Juliet, we're leaving now. It's your birthday today. Remember to book a restaurant, and we'll all celebrate with you tonight."
When there was still no response, he paused. "I'll buy you a strawberry cake from that place you like tonight. Happy now?"
When I was little, Mom and Dad were always busy with work. Simon was the one who took care of me most of the time.
I was a crybaby. Whenever I got upset, I'd cry and couldn't stop.
Whenever he didn't know how to cheer me up, he'd go two blocks out of his way to buy me a strawberry cake.
Over time, strawberry cake became our unspoken way of making up.
Back then, no matter how angry I was, the moment I saw a strawberry cake, I'd laugh through my tears and forgive him.
But, I would never have another birthday or eat another strawberry cake. And I would never be able to forgive any of them.
When they came out showered and changed, the security guard at the door was checking everyone’s names, getting ready to clear the building and close for the night.
"Everybody done? Anyone still inside?"
Lily mumbled under her breath. "When we were changing just now, the locker next to mine was empty. Juliet probably left on her own."
I was so frantic that I kept jumping up and down in midair.
I had put my things in the locker next to Lily's at first. But then I noticed that locker was leaking a little, so I'd switched to a different one.
Hearing that, Joshua said, "Yeah, we're all out."
The guard checked the list again and asked them sign. Then his eyes landed on the blank spot next to my name.
"What about Juliet Baxter? Why isn't she with you?"
Joshua took the sign-out sheet like it was nothing. "Juliet's my girlfriend. We had a fight earlier, so she got upset and left on her own."
He lowered his head and signed his name next to mine.
The guard leaned in and looked inside. "You sure there's nobody left in there?"
Caleb laughed and joked. "What, you think we've got somebody hidden in there?"
Simon handed over his ID. "Juliet's my sister. She really did get mad and leave early. There's nobody inside. Now you can get off work early and go home to your wife."
The guard flashed a wide grin, eagerly switched off the power inside, and locked the main doors.
Just before getting into the car, Joshua felt s strange, uneasy feeling. He turned and glanced at the dark swimming pool.
Seeing this, Lily spoke up thoughtfully, "Why don't we call Juliet and see where she is?"
Feeling irritated and restless, Joshua dialed my number.
My phone was in the locker, so of course, no one answered. After a while, an automated message informed him that the phone was switched off.
第3章
Joshua's expression darkened.
"Unbelievable. She even turn her phone off. She must have seen us all looking after you, gotten jealous, and now she's hiding on purpose."
"If we go looking for her, she'll be even more pleased with herself. We've spoiled her enough."
Caleb shut the car door without a second thought. "It's her birthday tonight. She'll definitely come back. Besides, where could she even hide? She came back on her own last time, didn't she?"
It took me a moment to remember the time he meant.
I'd been accepted into a graduate program without having to take the entrance exam, so I'd invited them all to celebrate.
I waited at the restaurant until it closed, but none of them showed up.
They didn't come home until the middle of the night, carrying a mango cake.
"Lily was in a bad mood, so we took her to see the blue wave."
"It's just grad school admission. It's not a big deal. Do you really need to show off like this?"
I was so hurt that I ran out of the house in the middle of the night and hid in our old secret hideout.
Whenever I used to get upset, I would hide there, and they would always come looking for me.
This time, no one came after me.
Instead, a drunk homeless man dragged me into the bushes. If a kind stranger out for a night run hadn't come along, I would have been done for.
I went home a mess. I thought they would at least ask me what had happened.
The living room was brightly lit, and the four of them were sitting on the rug watching a movie with Lily.
When they saw me come in, none of them even looked up. They just ignored me.
From then on, they were even more certain I couldn't live without them.
"It's Juliet's birthday today. Let's go pick out presents first."
Simon gave a faint smile. "Lily had a scare today too. Let's get her a few things to help her feel better."
They spent the next three hours patiently shopping with Lily at the mall.
Joshua bought Lily a limited-edition Jo Malone perfume, and planned to give me the free sample as my birthday present.
Caleb bought Lily the diamond bracelet she liked, and bought me nothing but a cheap pearl necklace.
Simon got Lily the luxury shoulder bag she'd had her eye on, and for me, he just grabbed a thermos off a shelf.
Their favoritism was so blatant.
As they waited at a red light, hundreds of messages suddenly flooded the swimming club's group chat.
Caleb sat with his legs crossed, scrolling on his phone.
"People in the chat are saying a cleaner thinks she saw a dead body in the deep end."
Joshua laughed. "Everyone loves to make a fuss. With so many people watching, how could anyone drown?"
Simon glanced at the screen, unconcerned. "From what the chat says, someone really did drown. No idea who was unlucky enough to die while swimming."
"If you can't swim, stay out of the deep end. It's disgusting when someone dies in there. We just renewed our membership."
None of them took the news seriously.
And none of them imagined that the unlucky person who drowned in the deep end was me.
Just as the car pulled up outside the restaurant, Joshua's phone rang. He tapped to answer through the car, and an unfamiliar woman's voice filled the car.
"Hello, is this Mr. Coleman? I’m from the management office at the swimming center."
"Our cleaner found a drowned body at the bottom of the deep end. We found a phone in the locker room, and you're listed as the emergency contact."
"Could you please confirm whether anyone who came with you is missing?"
Joshua's hands paused on the steering wheel. He instinctively glanced at Caleb and Simon in the back seat. "We're all together."
Caleb leaned forward. "Can you tell me the number?"
When the woman read out a familiar number, Caleb froze. "That really is my friend's phone. But she left a long time ago."
Simon frowned. "Juliet must be sulking again. She left her phone there on purpose to make us worry."
第4章
"We even fished out the goggles that fell in. How could we have left a person in the water? It must've been someone who snuck in without signing up."
The line went quiet for a few seconds.
"We've checked the entry records and the lockers over and over. Locker 12 is registered to a Ms. Juliet Baxter. Her things are still inside, and we haven't found her."
Joshua grabbed the phone. "Stuff in a locker doesn't prove anything. Our whole group is right here. If you're not sure, just call the police."
The person on the other end could only agree and hung up.
Lily patted her chest, still shaken. "Someone actually died. That's terrifying. I'm never going to that swimming center again."
Caleb was the first to push the car door open. He looked at the crowd lined up outside the restaurant and frowned. "I wonder if Juliet's even gotten us a table yet."
He went straight to the host stand to ask, and when he found out I hadn't made a reservation, he let out a cold snort.
"We're nice enough to throw her a birthday dinner, yet she throws a fit and leaves us waiting. Fine. We'll go somewhere else, without her."
I watched them sadly, my soul feeling like it had been soaked in ice water.
Caleb and I grew up together. On his seventh birthday, his parents divorced, and neither of them wanted him.
He had nowhere to go and passed out from hunger at the entrance to our neighborhood.
I was the one who brought him home and cut him the biggest slice of cake.
He held my hand tight. "Juliet, let's be best friends for life. I'll spend every birthday you ever have with you."
But ever since Lily showed up, he had changed. They all had.
None of them thought about the phone call any more. Instead, they headed to the Japanese restaurant next door.
As they waited for the food, the same number called again.
Joshua answered irritably, his tone sharp. "What now? I already told you everyone's here. Can you stop bothering us?"
A serious voice came over the line. "Hello, Mr. Coleman. This is the local police precinct. We received a call from the swimming center. A woman's body was found in the pool. According to the entry records, Ms. Juliet Baxter never signed out."
"We'd like you to come and identify the body. Do you recognize the deceased?"
As he spoke, the officer sent a photo to Joshua's phone.
I drifted closer, curious. So this was how ugly I looked like when I was dead.
My whole body was white and swollen from the water, my hair plastered messily over my face. Even I could barely recognize myself.
I gave a bitter little laugh at the thought. Then my eyes suddenly on something onto the screen.
The butterfly birthmark on my shoulder was still clear as day.
I was still wearing the matching ring Joshua had given me on my left index finger. He'd said that once he had enough money, he'd replace it with a diamond.
Around my neck was a star necklace, the eighteenth birthday gift Caleb had designed himself and had custom-made.
If they just looked at the photo once, they would know it was me.
My heart pounded with anticipation.
The next second, Lily screamed, covered her eyes, and threw herself into Joshua's arms. "What is that? It's so disgusting. Get it away!"
Joshua quickly set the phone down, his voice full of tenderness and apology. "I'm sorry. It's my fault. I know how easily you get scared, but I still let you see something so awful."
I gave a bitter laugh. I wanted to cry, but I had no tears left.
Even in death, I was nothing more than something disgusting to them.
He couldn't even bear to look at me for another second.
Joshua tossed the phone across the table to Caleb. "You two take a look and tell them what you think."
Caleb glanced at the photo carelessly and frowned in disgust.
第5章
"I don't recognize her. She's so pale and bloated. How could I possibly tell who she is?"
"Simon, you take a look. Do you know her?"
With that, he tossed the phone to my brother and thoughtfully put a piece of salmon on Lily's plate.
Simon spotted the birthmark at first glance, and his breathing grew uneven.
He was about to zoom in for a closer look when Lily suddenly clapped a hand over her mouth, gagging, and ran out. "That’s so disgusting. I can't even eat."
Simon dropped everything at once. He put the phone down, and all three of them went after her.
"That was so scary! Who in their right mind would show people a dead body?"
Right in front of everyone, Joshua deleted the photo without a word. "It's okay. It's gone now. You don't have to look at that disgusting thing anymore."
Lily finally managed a tearful smile.
Joshua took a moment to text the other side back.
[Sorry, this person has nothing to do with us. We really don't know her. You'll have to ask someone else.]
They went back to chatting and laughing. No one brought up the photo again.
Halfway through the meal, Mom called.
"Simon, I saw on the news that someone drowned at the swimming center you went to. Are you and Juliet okay?"
My brother leaned back in his chair, his tone careless. "It happened after we left. I don't know the details."
Mom let out a breath of relief. "What about Juliet? Is she okay?"
Simon frowned, a little impatient. "What could happen to her? She's a swimming champion. Did she call you again and complain about something?"
Mom paused. "I saw the news and got worried about you two. I called Juliet and she didn't pick up. Are you sure she's okay?"
Simon cut her off. "She went to get bubble tea. She'll be back soon. Now, we're in the middle of dinner. If there's nothing else, I'm hanging up."
After the call, he set his phone face down on the table and scoffed. "She’s definitely gone running to Mom to complain again. She's always making a fuss."
Caleb smiled and handed him a drink. "Come on, forget about her. She's always ruining the mood."
Even at the moment of my death, all I was to them was someone who ruined their fun.
"Come on, let's toast. Here's to many more years together."
Four glasses clinked together with a crisp ring.
They had barely set their glasses down when my brother's phone rang again.
He assumed it was a spam call and hung up without a second thought.
The phone rang again almost immediately.
Finally, annoyed, he picked up. "Will you stop calling? If you call again, I'm reporting you to the police!"
The voice on the other end was stern and solemn. "Is this Mr. Simon Baxter, Juliet Baxter's brother?"
"Yes, it's me. What is it?"
There was a brief pause before the voice continued, now even more solemn.
"After examining the phone left at the scene, reviewing the surveillance video, and expediting the DNA test, we have confirmed that the woman who drowned at the swimming center is your sister, Juliet Baxter."
"The cause of death is asphyxiation by drowning. There are also signs of blunt-force trauma on her body and muscle spasms in her calves."
"Please come to the city medical examiner's office immediately to complete the necessary procedures."
The call ended.
Simon froze, still holding his phone. The glass slipped from his other hand and crashed to the floor.
Caleb bent down to pick up the glass, then clapped him on the shoulder with a laugh. "Simon, come on. What kind of scam call has you this shaken? Don't tell me you actually believed them."
Joshua and Lily stopped what they were doing, looking at him in confusion.
Simon's face was deathly pale, his lips trembling badly. "That was the medical examiner's office. They said... they said the woman who drowned at the swimming center is Juliet."
The words hit them all like a bolt of lightning.
